


A Different Kind Of Life

by ScarletCorvid



Category: Fate/Zero
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-18
Updated: 2018-12-18
Packaged: 2019-09-21 15:43:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,519
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17046383
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScarletCorvid/pseuds/ScarletCorvid
Summary: One decision can change your life. For Kariya Matou, getting to live the life he thought impossible is the best change he can imagine.





	A Different Kind Of Life

**Author's Note:**

  * For [tenser](https://archiveofourown.org/users/tenser/gifts).



> This was written for Yuletide 2018. I hope I did the prompt given to me some justice!

One decision. One second one. Even one heartbeat. In those moments that seem so tiny and insignificant, the world can change. Lives can begin or end. One path can be chosen in a way that destroys the chances of ever moving onto another. But while everyone can wax philosophical about what they’d do in one of those situations, no one ever really knows until they face one themselves.

Kariya Matou faced it himself the moment he saw Sakura amoungst the Crest Worms. He’d already offered to take her place in the Grail War, but then that was before the horror of seeing his niece laying there with those dead, dead eyes.

His lips might have continued to make promises to Zouken, but his mind was still reeling at the sight before him. A year seemed little compared to the rest of her life, yet leaving Sakura in the kind of conditions he knew only too well from his upbringing, no so much worse than even that, seemed bitterly cruel.

But in the end, the old man sealed his own fate with a careless jibe that he’d known that Kariya was serious about his offer if he could spend a week in the worm pit without dying or going insane. How easy it was to put the suffering of others aside. And how easy it was to believe that any decent human being would just lay down beside the girl and allow her suffering to continue, knowing what they - no, Zouken - had done to her?

The last mistake Zouken Matou ever made was turning his back on someone who was stronger than him in physical strength, if not magecraft strength.

*****

Three Years Later

“Uncle!”

Would those words ever stop sounding so sweet?

Kariya turned from the stove to greet his niece.”Welcome home, Sakura-chan! You’re looking very excited. Is something special happening today?”

“You know it’s my competition!” She giggled in response.

It was amazing what three years away from the Mage world had done for the girl. Now she seemed like most girls her age, making friends at school and taking an interest in archery. There was still a bit of quietness to her, and her eyes had never quite lost their dead look, but Sakura had grown into a sweet, kind girl. Kariya was so intensely proud of her that sometimes he worried that Rin felt like she wasn’t as special. But his love for them was equal, as strong as if he’d fathered them himself.

“I seem to remember something about archery,” He rubbed his chin, pretending to think.

“Uncle!” Sakura giggled again, shaking her head. “I’m going upstairs to change!”

Stocking feet pounded up the stairs, bringing a smile to his lips. Who in their right mind would have chosen the Mage world over this kind of peace? Sakura and Rin’s father, unfortunately, but it had lead to his demise. It was hard to think ill of Tokiomi, at one time Kariya himself might have made the same decision. Every night he thanked whatever Divine being might be out there that his eyes had been opened in time.

The door opened a second time and Rin walked into the kitchen. The last three years had been more of a struggle for her, trying to find her place in a world where she was no longer a Mage in training, or honoring the things her father had taught her before the Grail War. However, she was a smart girl and Kariya encouraged her scholastic talents enthusiastically.

“Welcome home, Rin-chan.” He greeted her now, turning from the stove to offer her a smile. “We’ll be leaving soon for Sakura’s archery competition. Do you want to pack a snack before we go?”

“Noooo…” She protested, putting her hands on her stomach. “Really, Uncle, you pack too much for lunch! I’m still full and you’re already starting on dinner! I can’t stand the smells!”

She walked out of the room dramatically, playing it up for him. Though still serious-minded, she was able to joke around more now. He heard her steps on the stairs, quieter and slower than her sister’s.

The kitchen was quiet long enough for him to finish dinner and put it in the fridge to cool. Kariya wiped his hands off on the back of his jeans and went over a mental checklist to make sure everything was ready to take Sakura to her competition.

“That’s an interesting fashion statement.”

Kariya turned to find Aoi standing in the doorway, giggling at him. He couldn’t form a response at first, the shimmer of the light in her dark hair taking his breath away. How many more days in this house would it take for it to seem real, this life with her? Then he managed his own crooked smile, glancing down at the pink apron tied at his waist.

“If I remember correctly, you picked this one out.” He untied the strings and set it on the butcher block. “Mine just happened to be dirty.”

“Of course,” She smiled and offered him a slim, graceful hand. “Ready to go cheer on Sakura?”

***

The field in the center of the Primary school’s track was lined up with archery targets stapled to circular bales of hay. It was getting to be a familiar site to Kariya. This was the fourth time Sakura would be competing at the beginner level for the school’s archery team. Considering she’d just joined the team at the start of the school year and had already brought home one blue ribbon, he felt it was safe to assume he would be spending many afternoons in bleachers for the rest of her school years.

Rin sat between him and Aoi, looking alternately bored and excited for her sister. He glanced at her, offering a little smile in commiseration. Out of nine competitors, Sakura had drawn the seventh slot. Sitting through six other archers ahead of her was hard even for a grown man.

“Maybe you’ll join an athletic club next year, Rin,” Aoi ventured cheerfully.

The girl huffed in return. “I don’t think so. Sports really aren’t my thing.”

“That’s okay,” Kariya assured her. “I was never much for sports either.”

Rin quickly changed the subject. “There’s the girl Sakura told us about, Junko.”

Junko strode up confidently to the target and lined up her first shot. It was a little left of the mark, but still a very solid hit. The other two didn’t hit the center either, but it seemed a very good performance to Kariya, who knew only what Sakura had explained to him about archery.

“Don’t worry,” His eyes located Sakura to the side of the targets, waiting with the four girls left to compete. “Look at her, she’s ready to go out and win.”

“You’re always so confident about her abilities,” Rin observed, with a touch of sadness.

Over her head, Kariya and Aoi exchanged looks. It was looking like they were going to have to have a talk with her soon. Or rather, he would have to. She didn’t seem to be doubting her mother. At least right now.

“Rin-chan, I’m confident that both of my nieces are amazing.” He assured her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

A small smile crossed Rin’s face, but she turned back towards the field. Even if she protested, there was no doubt she was equally proud of her little sister. The way she smirked when the sixth girl missed the target completely on her final shot had that fierce, competitive edge. She wanted Sakura to win as much as he and Aoi did.

“Here she comes…” Aoi sighed, reaching over to take Rin’s hand. “Oh, I always get so nervous when she goes out for her turn.”

“Mom, she’s not going to shoot herself in the foot or anything,” Rin chided with a little smile.

“Go Sakura!” Kariya called out.

Sakura had every bit as much confidence as Junko, who was the top-scoring member of the beginner’s class so far that year. She also moved with a strange gracefulness that seemed to be much older than her seven years. When she lifted the bow, her entire body went still as stone, the only thing moving her arms and tiny fingers.

Kariya held his breath as she released the first shot. It struck the target with a heavy thud, just slightly below the center. There was a short pause, then the second arrow struck three inches to the right of the first. This time the pause was longer as Sakura sighted the target and studied it closely.

“Come on…” Rin murmured. “See it…see the mark…”

He gave his older niece a quick sideways glance before turning his attention back to the field. Sakura took a breath and released her final arrow.

THWAP!

Kariya and Rin were both on their feet and cheering before Sakura herself seemed to realize the arrow was buried firmly in the center of the target.

“Is that...is that a bullseye?” Aoi asked, her voice full of awe.

“Yes! GO SAKURA!” Kariya yelled.

“Her first bullseye!” Rin pumped her fist in the air. “Go Sakura-chan!”

***

Though the ride home was jubilant and full of happy talk about Sakura’s blue ribbon, Kariya didn’t forget that sad look on Rin’s face as she commented on his faith in her sister’s abilities. After dinner, the girls went upstairs to finish their homework, and he followed shortly after to have a talk with Rin. There was no way he was letting the night end without making an effort to fix what a problem he’d unwittingly created.

He tapped on her door and got no answer. After a second failed attempt at getting her attention, he slowly slid the door back.

Kariya bit the inside of his cheek to keep himself silent at the sight before him. Rin was standing with her back to him, practicing a series of jabs and kicks that he recognized all too well. He knew the girl had been trained in karate, but he didn’t think she still had an interest in it. Especially after her repeatedly telling both him and Aoi she had no interest in athletics.

She was quite good. It was clear that she had been practicing, or perhaps had never stopped. When she turned around to work from a different angle, her face was glowing with exercise and happiness. The kind of happiness that she didn’t show that often. Not that she was a sullen girl, by any means, but she rarely seemed just shy of jubilant, as she did now. Until she noticed her audience, at least, then her face clouded over and turned pink.

“I knocked twice, but you didn’t answer…” Kariya explained quickly.

“Oh.” Rin sat down hard on her bed. “What did you want, Uncle?”

“I wanted to talk to you.” He went to sit beside her, offering a smile. “I didn’t know you were still practicing your karate.”

“Well...sometimes.”

“You’re very good at it. Why haven’t you joined the martial arts club at school? I know they have one…”

She dropped her head, looking at her hands in her lap. “Well, it was something I did before. You know, like doing magecraft and alchemy.”

Kariya gently tipped her chin up to look her in the face. “So you thought maybe your mother and I wouldn’t want you to do karate, because we don’t want you to do magecraft anymore until you’re old enough to understand what it really means to live that kind of life?”

“Yes.” Rin sighed. “But I don’t know if I ever want to do magecraft again. I mean...Papa…”

She trailed off, looking away. Kariya understood the conflict. Magecraft was something Tokiomi had shared with his oldest daughter, but it was also the reason he wasn’t there to see her grow up. And someday she’d learn it was the reason that her sister had been taken from her, even if the separation had been short.

“Rin, I’m going to be completely honest with you, alright? Sometimes we have to move on and start over, but that doesn’t mean we have to give up everything that was part of that life. We might have to start a new life, but the things that still work for us, that are precious to us, and the things that make us happy, we can hold onto those.”

“Except if they’re dangerous.” She nodded slowly.

“Yes,” He agreed. “But I don’t see how karate is dangerous. And I’m willing to bet your mother would agree. Perhaps we could talk to her about getting you started a dojo?”

Rin turned to face him, eyes lit up like sapphires. “Really? Oh Uncle, do you think you could get her to agree?”

“I think we should talk to her together.” Kariya stood up and held out his hand to her. “I know she’ll appreciate hearing it from you, and I think you’d feel better if you told her yourself. And maybe we can talk about some other things too.”

“I think...I’d like that.”

***

“Thank you.”

The girls were in bed and Kariya was working on their lunches. He turned to find Aoi in the kitchen doorway for the second time that day, looking just as lovely in the lamplight as she had in the sunlight. She was holding a mug of tea between her hands, a soft smile on her lips.

“For what?” He asked, motioning her over to join him.

“Rin doesn’t open up very often. It was nice to hear what’s going on inside of her. And I think enrolling her at a dojo was a wonderful idea.”

Kariya went back to work on the Bento boxes in front of him. “I felt terrible when she pointed out I always had such confidence in Sakura’s abilities. I didn’t want her to think she wasn’t just as capable. There’s no reason for them to have competition between them, or to think one is favored over the other.”

“I think it’s safe to say you spoil both girls equally,” Aoi peeked at the Bento boxes.

“Spoil? How do you know it’s not about my artistic expression?”  
On a bed of rice, he’d formed shapes out of vegetables. In Sakura’s, a blue ribbon next to a bow and arrow. On Rin’s, he had a girl doing a karate stance in her white gi and black belt. Beside the rice, he’d packed them dumplings, tempura shrimp and two cookies. His lunches were something he prided himself on.

“Well, everything looks like what it’s supposed to be.” She teased him gently. “If you’re doing being artistic, why don’t you pack it up and come to bed with me?”

Aoi leaned over and kissed his cheek. He pressed a return kiss to her temple, then closed the Bento boxes up. “Hold that thought long enough for me to get these in the fridge.”

Plans changed, expectations were altered by reality, and Kariya Matou was not the only man to find himself living a different kind of life than he’d planned.

And for that, he was truly grateful.


End file.
